Clothes Clutter: Organizing All Your Accessories

Earlier this week, I took you on a tour of our brand new Master Closet.

It was the first post in a series of posts I’m planning to do about “clothes clutter” and it gave me a good opportunity to  show you exactly how Dave and I keep all our clothes organized {and all in ONE closet!}.

However, after hearing feedback from many of you, I decided that accessories should be the next post in this series.

I think accessories are like food storage containers — they magically multiply without your knowledge – and before you know it, they’re everywhere!

If you feel like your accessories are taking over your closet, bedroom, bathroom, etc. Then let me give you a few tips to keep them organized — and show you how we keep our accessories organized.

Jewelry:

:

I keep my bracelets in an old star ice-mold that sits on the top of my dresser. It looks fantastic and makes it really easy to find what bracelet I want right away. Plus, if the mold starts to overflow, I know it’s time to purge. Cool bowls and baskets would also look nice.

Similarly, I keep all my earrings and rings in an old muffin tin. I actually keep this tin in one of our bathroom drawers so it doesn’t spill or tip over. Ice-cube trays are another great way to store earrings and rings in individual compartments – plus they stack!

I hang all my necklaces on an old ladder — simply by pounding nails into the ladder at differing heights. It’s nothing fancy, but it also serves as decoration for our bedroom and keeps my necklaces tangle free.

Unmentionables:

:

I got a TON of questions asking how I stored my underwear and socks — so although I never thought I would show a picture of my underwear drawer on the internet…. here it is!

It’s the very top drawer of my dresser and I use these clear plastic drawer organizers to keep everything in neat rows {yes, I always fold my underwear!} Also, I should mention that I actually have a double layer of socks on the right side of the drawer — heavy wool socks and tights/nylons on the bottom; athletic socks and dress socks on top.

Tank Tops / T-shirts / Athletic Clothes:

:

I have quite a few tank tops, t-shirts, and athletic clothes because that is what I wear most often. I usually wear a tank top under everything, and the minute I get home, I change into a t-shirt. So I like to keep these items easily available and very visible.

As you can see by the pictures below, I fold all my shirts and stack them “horizontally” instead of in a vertical pile — that way I can see every single shirt when I open the drawer. Tank tops and PJ’s are in the 2nd dresser drawer, t-shirts and athletic gear are in the 3rd drawer.

 UPDATE: If you would like to see how I fold our t-shirt, click here!! 

Shoes:

:

Shoes were another thing I got a lot of questions about — and I realized shoe storage can be a huge pain, especially if you have big boots, and other more substantial shoes that take up all kinds of space.

I used to have a ton of shoes, but over the last few years, I’ve really cut back to just the basics — a good pair of black and brown flats, black and brown dress shoes, black and brown boots, a few flip flops, a few “cute” pairs, and then my tennis shoes. Besides the boots and running shoes, I keep everything in the basket below.

A few other ideas for shoes would be to use an over-the-door shoe organizer, put shoe shelves at the bottom of your closet, or even keep your shoes by the back door {if you have enough room there}.

Belts, Scarves, etc.

.

I just installed a clear over-the-door shoe organizer on the back of one of our closet doors to organize all our belts, scarves, and other mics. accessories – we LOVE it!!

Dave even decided to keep his MP3 player, cell phone, sunglasses, wallet, and watch in a few of the compartments {which means they won’t be sitting out on his dresser any more!}

As you can see, we still have plenty of space for more!

A few other ideas for belts and scarves are to install hooks, put the items in baskets, or just hang them on hangers.

Purses and Bags:

:

Over the past few years, I have REALLY tried to cut back in the purse department too! I have a nice bag for summer/spring and another one I like to use in the fall/winter. I also have a couple smaller bags as well as a couple dressier clutches…but that’s it.

I keep all my purses and bags on the top shelf of our closet. I stuff them with newspaper so they keep their shape and then put them inside cloth bags so they don’t get dusty.

So that’s how I organize our many different accessories.

.

Obviously, depending on the size of your closet, your bedroom, and the amount of accessories you have, my suggestions may or may not work for you. {too bad I can’t have ALL the answers!}

Do you have any suggestions that work well for your accessories?  I’d love to hear them!

And just because it’s been a while, here’s a picture from earlier this week {6 months along}